Word Count: 2,719 Words
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Xiao Yan possessed the Flame Mantra and the Nihility Devouring Flame's Heaven Seed Flame. Even the Nightmare Heavenly Fog cast by the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame could not invade his body, much less seize control of him the way it had taken Xiao Chen.
Even so, though it could not touch him directly, the Nightmare Heavenly Fog had still spun a nightmare around him!
"You're saying this is an illusion?!" Xiao Chen's heart lurched. Hadn't he already dispelled the Nightmare Heavenly Fog? Hadn't he already regained his senses?!
"We're all real, and Ancestor Xiao Chen, you have indeed woken up." Xiao Yan's eyes never left the white-robed man on the throne. His tone was calm, almost quiet. "But we have, without question, fallen into an illusion. That is what makes the Nightmare Heavenly Fog so terrifying. If we keep walking along the path the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame laid out for us, we'll only sink deeper and deeper, until in the end we become its Fire Slaves completely. Even if we fight a great battle here and 'slay' it, in truth we'd still be trapped inside its illusion."
He studied the false Purifying Lotus Demon Flame before him. The most frightening aspect of the Nightmare Heavenly Fog was that you could never know when things had truly ended!
If his guess was right, the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame had already written out the entire 'script' in advance. After he dispelled the very first layer of the Nightmare Heavenly Fog, it had arranged for him to meet Xun Er, using the real Xun Er to make him believe he had genuinely escaped.
That was what made the Nightmare Heavenly Fog so dreadful. It constantly used real people and real events to erode your suspicion, coaxing you into thinking you were already free.
After that, the two of them had joined hands, breaking through hall after hall, passing danger after danger. Then, by a seeming stroke of luck, they had encountered an old ancestor of the Xiao Clan. Relying on the Xiao Clan's Clan Mark, they awakened Xiao Chen, and Xiao Chen had brought them here.
The whole sequence had played out like clearing levels in a game, complete with hardships, risk, a brush of fortune, and finally, the 'boss room.'
Judging from what this Purifying Lotus Demon Flame had just said, 'Defeat me, and you will obtain the Demon Flame's Essence Flame,' Xiao Yan estimated that the Demon Flame's final arrangement would be a fierce, world-shaking battle. He and Xun Er would fight with everything they had, and in the end they would 'luckily defeat the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame' and obtain the Essence Flame, refining it in triumph.
Their strength would soar. They would leave the Demon Flame Space, restore the Xiao Clan, and dominate the continent. A joyous, perfect ending.
But the truth was that even if they defeated the 'Purifying Lotus Demon Flame' before them, even if they walked out of the Demon Flame Space, all of it would still be within the Demon Flame's design, still part of the Nightmare Heavenly Fog!
It was like a nightmare that locked you inside a beautiful dream, where everything inside that dream was real. Xun Er was real. Xiao Chen was real. He himself was real. Only the world was fake!
This was the strongest illusion-type Dou Technique on the Dou Qi Continent, personally created by the Purifying Lotus Demon Saint... the Nightmare Heavenly Fog!
Those Fire Slaves outside were probably still blissfully lost in their 'I obtained the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame' dreams.
But in a net of a hundred tight meshes, the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame had still left one opening. It did not know that Xiao Yan's merged Heavenly Flame contained the Nihility Devouring Flame's Heaven Seed Flame!
A special link existed between the Nihility Devouring Flame and the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame. The two of them were the only Heavenly Flames on the Dou Qi Continent to truly bear the title of 'unique,' and that shared uniqueness was their connection. They had always been natural rivals, each wanting to devour the other and become the continent's strongest Heavenly Flame.
So the instant Mao Wu laid eyes on this so-called Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, it knew at once that this was a fake. That connection simply could not be forged.
This was a Heaven Seed Flame!
"You must have spent the last thousand years building this illusion. To be fair, if I didn't have the Nihility Devouring Flame's Heaven Seed Flame, you really would have won a complete victory this time."
"No matter how realistic it is, an illusion is still an illusion in the end. The moment you show a flaw, it collapses on its own," Xiao Yan said, his voice low and steady.
"Damn you! You court your own death!"
The handsome face of the white-robed man finally twisted with fury. With a furious shout, his figure blurred and reappeared above Xiao Yan. His hand clenched, and milky-white flames condensed into a massive flame spear. His arm whipped out, and the spear ripped through space, carrying a breath of utter destruction as it shot straight toward Xiao Yan and the others.
Xiao Yan smiled faintly as he looked up at that slightly insubstantial white-robed figure. His Dou Qi surged and his hands formed a seal. On his shoulder, Mao Wu's small body began to change, its Fire Spirit form reverting into a ball of pitch-black flame.
Xiao Yan's eyes narrowed, cold light flickering in their depths.
He didn't panic in the slightest before the lunging attack of the false Purifying Lotus Demon Flame. He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, then opened his left hand. The power of the Great Heaven Creation Palm and the Nihility Devouring Flame's Heaven Seed Flame erupted together. A deep hum rang out as a terrifyingly vast black hole blossomed into being.
Heavenly Flame Dou Technique, World-Devouring Seed Flame!
Endless black flames roared out in all directions. The Purifying Lotus Demon Flame's spear pierced clean through Xiao Yan's body without harming him in the least. His figure rippled and faded like mist as the black flames surged forward like a tidal sea, crashing over the Purifying Lotus Demon Saint form the false Demon Flame had manifested and swallowing it whole.
Black fire splattered everywhere. The entire space began to burn away, slowly peeling back to reveal a tunnel of nothingness. At the far end of that void passage, Xiao Yan finally sensed the true Essence Flame of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame.
Xiao Chen had not lied to him. Once you passed his trial, what lay beyond was indeed the real Essence Space of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame. The only catch was that you first had to force your way through the Nightmare Heavenly Fog to reach it.
Now the Nihility Devouring Flame had devoured a portion of the Nightmare Heavenly Fog, finally exposing the true Heavenly Flame Space. Xiao Yan even caught the faint auras of Cai Lin, Little Fairy Doctor, Zi Yan, and Qing Lin. They were still each trapped within their own Nightmare Heavenly Fog illusions.
However, Mao Wu was not the true Essence Flame of the Nihility Devouring Flame. To completely unravel every last Nightmare Heavenly Fog would take far too long. Right now, with the Yan Clan and the other Dou God Clans all bound and unable to interfere, this was Xiao Yan's best opportunity to seize the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame's Essence Flame!
Behind him, Xun Er watched as he shattered the Nightmare Heavenly Fog purely through his own strength, and her eyes brimmed with deep admiration. "Xiao Yan ge-ge is really amazing!"
Her soft praise actually made Xiao Yan feel a little embarrassed. He rubbed his nose, drew in a deep breath, puffed out his chest, and turned around with a deliberately calm expression. "This was just a minor thing. If it had been the Nightmare Heavenly Fog cast by the true Purifying Lotus Demon Saint, I probably wouldn't have been able to break it. This Purifying Lotus Demon Flame just hasn't fully mastered it."
His Heavenly Flame Dou Technique erupted in full, and the entire illusion space began to crumble and vanish.
Mao Wu's eyes went round. It sucked in a mighty breath, and bolstered by Xiao Yan's Dou Qi, its mouth became like a bottomless black hole, swallowing every last wisp of the Nightmare Heavenly Fog's white mist.
The space twisted and warped, then shattered inch by inch, dragging the other Nightmare Heavenly Fog spaces down with it.
"Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, you are indeed impressive, but a mere illusion isn't enough. Have your true body come out and face me. Break!" Xiao Yan's hands wove new seals. Black flame gushed from Mao Wu's mouth, transforming into a boundless sea of fire that surged toward the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame's main body in the distance.
"Hmph!"
The Purifying Lotus Demon Flame's face darkened as he took in that surging tide of black fire. His hand swept out, and endless milky-white flames likewise transformed into a sea of Heavenly Flame. Black and white collided. A thunderous boom rang out as the purifying force and devouring force detonated together.
The instant space exploded, a wave of dizziness slammed into the depths of Xiao Yan's mind. He snapped his eyes open.
A sea of magma filled his vision. Milky-white flames spurted from the molten surface from time to time, and that pale-tinged magma stretched as far as the eye could see, as though this entire space were nothing but an ocean of liquid fire.
Above the magma, enormous boulders floated in the air. Xiao Yan and Xun Er stood upon one of them. Not far behind them, a vast silver light ring slowly rotated.
"We're out?"
Xun Er took in the unfamiliar landscape and let out a long breath.
"This isn't another illusion... right?" She scanned their surroundings, a tremor of unease in her voice. The recent ordeal had truly rattled them. Who could have imagined that after fighting so hard for so long in there, all of it had been nothing but wasted effort?
"The Purifying Lotus Demon Flame doesn't have that kind of ability." Xiao Yan laughed softly, and a heavy weight lifted from his chest. After escaping that damned illusion, even his soul felt lighter. Nightmare Heavenly Fog truly deserved its reputation as the Purifying Lotus Demon Saint's signature technique. It was frightening beyond measure.
"Grragh!"
Just as he relaxed, Xiao Chen suddenly let out a low roar. Struggle twisted his features, and his voice turned hoarse and urgent. "The Purifying Lotus Demon Flame is trying to control me again!"
Xiao Yan's expression tightened. Xiao Chen might be a Fire Slave of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, but his overwhelming strength allowed him to resist the Demon Flame's hold. If they could find a way to break that hold entirely, he would be a tremendous help. Right now, what Xiao Yan lacked most was exactly this kind of peak expert who could stand alone.
Of course, thinking about it was one thing. Making it reality was quite another. He had already tasted firsthand how terrifying the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame was. How could erasing its control over Xiao Chen be easy?
He was still at a loss when Little Fairy Doctor's voice drifted over. "Perhaps the power of the Pill Beasts can temporarily suppress the power inside his body."
Space twisted. Little Fairy Doctor, dressed in a snow-white robe, glided forward like a celestial maiden. A white pill and a green pill drilled out of the air behind her, then transformed into two peculiar Pill Beasts.
The little white rabbit and Tuan Tuan exhaled strands of pill qi that carried both healing and calming effects.
"Fortunately, his own cultivation is high enough to block most of the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame's power. Otherwise, even the Pill Beasts wouldn't be able to suppress it." Little Fairy Doctor let out a quiet sigh of relief.
As she appeared, sharp whistles of wind cut through the air. One after another, figures shot out from the surrounding floating boulders. They hovered above the magma, panting heavily, faces still etched with fear.
"Xiao Yan!" Space twisted again. A surge of purple light burst out as Zi Yan, Cai Lin, and Qing Lin emerged from the void space that Zi Yan had created.
It seemed the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame had grouped the three of them together.
"It looks like tearing apart the illusion triggered a chain reaction and dragged everyone out along with you," Xun Er said.
"Just us won't be enough to subdue the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame." Xiao Yan smiled faintly, but his gaze drifted toward the magma sea not far away. There, the molten surface slowly swelled upward. A massive magma pillar roughly a thousand feet across surged out of the ocean of fire, and when it rose to a height level with everyone, it finally slowed and came to a halt, magma still seething along its sides.
Atop that pillar, beneath the gaze of all present, a handsome white-robed man appeared.
As they took in this solid, living figure, the expressions of Xiao Yan and the others grew utterly grave. Mao Wu had already told him. This was the true Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, the main body!
The instant the white-robed man appeared above the magma pillar, the entire space fell silent. Countless gazes, blazing with greed and heat, locked onto him. Everyone present could tell at a single glance that this man was the true Purifying Lotus Demon Flame!
"Purifying Lotus Demon Flame, I never imagined that in a mere thousand years you would cultivate the Purifying Lotus Demon Saint's Nightmare Heavenly Fog to such a level. You truly force me to look at you in a new light."
On one of the floating boulders, the black-robed Hall Chief of the Hall of Souls lifted his head. His expression was grim as he stared at the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame. He too had been trapped inside the illusion earlier. If it hadn't automatically shattered at the very last moment, even he would not have realized he was still caught within it.
The Hall of Souls had made its preparations based on the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame's strength from the last thousand-year cycle. They had no idea it now possessed an ability like Nightmare Heavenly Fog. Without any treasures specifically prepared to ward off spiritual illusions, they had walked straight into the trap.
"This Demon Flame grows more bizarre by the day. This time, no matter what, we absolutely cannot let it keep running loose. If it escapes, the Central Plains will be drowned in blood and ruin!" Elder Yao Wangui of the Yao Clan stared at the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame with burning eyes, greed spreading endlessly from the depths of his heart.
In all his years of cultivation, he had never heard of a Heavenly Flame capable of constructing such an uncanny illusion, one that even he himself could not detect. The recent ordeal had let him sense with painful clarity how terrifying the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame truly was. But precisely because of that, the greed in his heart had multiplied several times over.
At his words, quite a few people nearby nodded, their faces marked with fear as they looked at the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame. The abilities it had just displayed were simply too terrifying.
Cai Lin walked to Xiao Yan's side, her expression grave. "Xiao Yan, even if we join forces, we aren't necessarily certain to capture the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame. And that's not even counting the other Dou God Clans, who will definitely try to interfere."
Xun Er's voice sounded quietly in his mind. "Xiao Yan ge-ge, have you tried using the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame to burn that Demon Flame map fragment?"
"Use the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame?" Xiao Yan's heart jolted, and then in a flash he realized she had a point.
This was, after all, a map fragment left behind by the Purifying Lotus Demon Saint. It surely had other uses. Perhaps the key to unlocking it was to bring it into the Demon Flame Space and use the Purifying Lotus Demon Flame itself to open it!